Giving my cat some vegan love! 
In my opinion and experience true veganism is all about love, and so what better day than Valentine’s to talk about veganism and how it relates to love? Embracing veganism in all its glory helps us give love in the following ways:
1) To ourselves – a healthy vegan diet has been proven to be one of the best diets in the world, so by eating vegan you are taking care of (ie. loving) your own body. But there’s more to it than the physical benefits. Veganism not only nourishes the body through diet; it nourishes the mind and soul as well. When you take a stand against violence, cruelty and hatred, you are making a vote for love. And when we give love, we can’t help but receive it.
2) To those not harmed – a vegan lifestyle does not harm other beings – directly (by refusing the direct products of violence, like meat, dairy, leather, wool, animal excretions in “self-care” products, etc) and indirectly (by refusing to harm the enviroment indirectly by supporting industries like factory farming and commercial fishing).
3) To family, friends and aquaintances – when you cook healthy, delicious vegan food for those you care about, you offer them peace and happiness. We are what we eat. It has become a joke in our family that everything I cook is a “vegan love” (fill in the blank), but I truly believe that when you share vegan food with others you share not only something wonderful to eat, but also a worldview that envisions a kinder, more peaceful place for us all to live.
4) To the world – when you live a gentle life, taking in love, health and peace, you can’t help but spread it around your family, your workplace, your community. When you live vegan love, you give vegan love.
Share some of your vegan love with the world today! Happy Valentines Day!
Emma Levez Larocque is an author and photographer living on the west coast of Canada. She has been veg for 18 years, vegan for 3. Her passion is working to make veganism mainstream to promote a better, kinder world for all beings. 
